When supermarket tabloids pay attention to politics, you know the story's probably a real doozy. In 1987, the National Enquirer published a picture of Donna Rice sitting on Gary Hart's lap during a maritime jaunt -- making words superfluous and dashing his presidential ambitions. In 1992 The Star published reports on Gennifer Flowers' alleged affair with Bill Clinton. In the summer of 1996, the tabloids were again red all over -- this time with the blood of Dick Morris, one of President Clinton's most powerful political strategists.

In August, The Star splashed a sensational account of Morris'
trysts with a call girl, Sherry Rowlands, including what appeared to be a picture of the two on the balcony of a hotel. The story was more
than a case of kiss-and-tell. It rolled around inside the beltway
and spread across the nation, grabbing headlines
and increasing the shadow on a White House already beset by
election-year political woes.

To the White House's chagrin, Rowlands not only spilled the
beans about her transactions with Morris -- she kept
detailed diaries. What Rowlands' prose lacked in terms of
style -- she was clearly no Anais Nin -- it more than
made up for in terms of content. Morris, it seemed,
liked to do more than play with Rowlands' toes. He regaled
her with tales of the White House and his role in that
hallowed institution. She said Morris expounded at length on his
dealings with the President, the first lady, and a host of
other major players. To prove his bonafides, Morris,
according to Rowlands, let her listen in on telephone
conversations with Clinton, and read Hillary Rodham Clinton's speech to the Democratic National Convention several days before it was delivered.

But Morris' reported musings were not restricted to terra firma.
Rowlands says Morris also shared what he termed a
"military secret" -- that scientists had discovered signs of
possible life on Mars.

Needless to say, President Clinton's critics -- from
Republicans to radio talk-show hosts -- had a
field day with the story, many of them trying to link Morris'
escapades with Rowlands to allegations of sexual misconduct
leveled at Clinton himself by Paula Jones.

Realizing that his embarrassment could possibly overshadow
President Clinton's moment of glory at the Democratic
Convention, which he was about to address, Morris resigned, saying he did not want to become an issue in the campaign.

The scandal barely scratched the President's public image. Surveys found it did little to make voters doubt his stated commitment to family values.

In the end, the Morris episode ruined a powerful man's public
image, embarrassed his family, and dredged up another story --
that Morris fathered an illegitimate child with a woman in
Texas with whom he'd had a 15-year-affair.

The election is history. President Clinton has embarked on a
second term, and Republicans and Democrats alike are waiting
to see if Whitewater Independent Counsel Kenneth Starr's
investigation will yield fruit or wither on the vine.

Among the numerous documents subpoenaed by Starr, incidentally, are the diaries of Sherry Rowlands. Why? It seems that they contain an excerpt
in which Morris is quoted as saying that the 700 or so improperly collected FBI files (remember that scandal?) were gathered at the behest of Hillary Rodham
Clinton.